Truss



I. SCHUL April 19, 1932.

TRUS S Filed Dec. 11, 1929 INVENTOR fr /07 Jc/2u/ ,lw ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 19, 1932 UNITED STATES IRVING serum, or New YORK, N. Y.

TRUSS v Application filed December 11, 1929. Serial No. 413,166. 7 i l i This invention relates to trusses. An object of this invention is to provide a truss which shall remain in constant normal position on the body despite any unusual movements thereof, and another object is to provide a trusspad which shall be very efiicient in supporting a hernia and permitting of free movements of the body without danger of strangulation, the pad being so constructed as to cause it to retain its normal position with respect thereto under all conditions.

The invention consists broadly in providing a truss having a band comprising a portion adapted to be bent into shape to fit snugly about the waist of the body and another portion resilient or flexible and dependent to normally juxtapose a pad against a hernia, and be yielding so as to exert a'constant benign pressure against the same, and in providing a pad of rubber having fingers which are flexible.

A truss embodying these features is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, where- Fig. 1 is aface view of the truss in place on the body;

Fig. 2 is a top view thereof; Fig. 3 is a perspective view thereof with the sheath or cover removed;

Fig. 4 is a modification of the truss band;

Fig. 5 is a detail of the pad and manner of attachment to the band;

Fig. 6 is a detail, showing the pad in side view;

Fig. 7 is a cross section on the line 77 of Fig. 5, and

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the metal insert.

The truss comprises a girdle or band 1 hav- For its most efiicient action, the band comprises a resilient or flexible portion 3 adapted to carry a pad 4 to be hereafter more fully described, and a portion 5 adapted to be bent into shape. The band may be of metal, and may comprise two parts riveted at 6, welded or otherwise secured together, or it may consist of a strip of steel, the portion 3 being highly tempered to give it great flexibility but resistant to being bent into shape, and

ing a sheath 2 of leather or other material.

the portion 5 being made soft, by well-known methods of treatment, so as to be readily bent into shape. .Or a soft piece of steel may be employed as the portion 5, and the portion 3 suitably treated for flexibility, and both joined together by any of the means above described.

It will be thus seen that the band may be shaped at one end to fit snugly one side of the body so as to efliciently support the truss thereon, while the other end of the truss has the necessary flexibility or resiliency to accommodate thatlportion ofthe truss to various movements and positions of the body so that the pad remains at all times in proper juxtaposition to the hernia and exerts acon stant pressure thereon.

The pad end 7 of the flexible part of the band is dependent so as to assure the proper supporting of the truss by the body andto prevent shifting thereof with respect thereto. Secured to the depending portion of the band is a pad 4 adapted to be placed against a hernia. The pad is preferably made en- H tirely of rubber, having somewhat the form of a hand with three fingers 8', 8, the middle one being made longer than the other two and all being flexible. Embedded in the pad is a flexible metal plate 9 which has substantially the same outline as the pad. I The plate is provided with two apertures 10, 10, which are adapted to receive the screws 11 and 12 respectively. The screw 11 acts as a pivot upon which a bracket member 13v is adapted to be pivoted and secured to said pad, while the screw 12 rides in a slot 14 insaid member. It will be seen that by pivoting the pad about the screw 11, it may be adjusted to a 'desired position, and by tightening the screw 12 the pad is made immovable afteradjusted position with respect to the band. An extension 15 of the member 13h; provided with a slot 16 which, cooperating with screws 17 17,-permit said member and pad to be secured in adjusted position to the band. i

The pad and metal insert or plate are given a somewhat shallow concavo-convex contour, and the pad is of substantially uniform thick ness. 7 The great efliciency and comfort of the truss, it may be explained, appears to be due shape to be snugly fitted and supportedabout the waist of the body; the portion 3, which is made of such flexibility as to give readily under all bodily movements while exerting at all times a benign, Constant pressure against the hernia; the depending construc= tion of the band which follows the inguinal groove or groin, which prevents shifting'of the pad, and the particular construction and form of the pad which supports the hernia efiiciency and comfortably. As will be observed from Fig. 3, the band is spiral in form, and tothis feature may be explained the fact that the truss is not shifted out of position on the body. This will be readily apparent froma comparison of prior'trusses with my truss. Heretofore the bands of trusses lay in one plane, so that in placing the truss upon the body it 'isnecessary topull the pad end of the truss down to. the region of the hernia; This puts the band under a strain, and' when the body is bent or moved about, the truss springs back into its normal position. In other words, these trusses are not of the shape which they are-to assumein their effective position, but must be strained or flexed into that position.

, olmtheother hand, I give my truss the shape which it assumes when in place upon the body, so that no matter how the position of the body is varied the truss remains in the same position.

In order to more surely secure the truss to the body, I may provide the bracket member with a stud 18 which is adapted to be inserted into any one of the openings 19, 19, in a strap 20, sewn to the band sheath, or otherwise attached thereto but I have found that this strap is unnecessary,since the truss is re: tained in position on the body solely by virtue of the particular'construction of the band as above described.

It should be particularly noted that the bracket member 13 is rigid and is attached to the flexible metal insert 9 at the pad end thereof. The said pad and plate having its convex surface presented tothe bracket member, the latter tends to flatten the said plate and hence the hand and finger portions of-the pad, and thereby causes the padrto adhere snugly and uniformly. against the hernia. This is an important feature of my invention.

The pad is adjustablebecause of this pivotal connection through the screw 11 with the member 13, and when it is turned on its pivot-it can be held in the desired adjusted position bytightening the screw 12 in the slot 14. The position of the pad as regards the beltis, of course, determined by the point at which the pivot screw 11 engages the pad; and by selecting the position of the hole 10 for the screw 11 in the plate 9 when this plate is made; that is, the upper hole 10, as shown in'Fig. 8, the required position and range of. adjustment can be obtained. For instance, by putting the upper hole 10 in Fig. 8 to one side or the other when the plate 9 is made, the pad in the middle position of its adjust ment will lie more or less transversewith re-.

spect to the bracket 13; and if thiS-upper hole 10 in Fig. 8 be thus placed far enough to the right, or left, this pad in its central position of adjustment may even be made to lie at right angles to the bracket'13. Obvi-- "ously the. exact point at which the upper hole 10. is to be located can be'determined for any particular case and Ireserve the right to make changes of this sort in practice; Having described my invention, what I claim is: V

1. A truss comprising a spirallycurved. metal band adapted to retain its shape, one

end of which is resilient and tempered so that it tends to retain its shape and the other end.v of which can be more readily b'ent,.a bracket: connected to. said resilient end, and a truss. pad made up of a plate-with fingers covered. with cushioning, .material, said. plate being; pivotally attached to the bracket, the. pad. and the brackethaving means comprising a slot and a holding element topermit thepad to be moved pivotally to adjusted .positiom.

2. A truss comprising a metal band adapt-i ed to retain its'shape, oneend .of-the hand being resilientand of atemperto tend to retain its shape, and the other end of which.

is more readily bent, and a truss-padfsecuredto the resilient end of said ban In testimony whereof I aflix my-signature:

IRVING SGHUL.

III 

